


A kiss

by ShadowIsEm



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Baby Eren, Babysitting, Childhood, Eventual Smut, Gay, Love, M/M, Yaoi, aot - Freeform, bxb - Freeform, ereri, guardian levi, levi is so soft for eren
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-19
Updated: 2019-11-14
Packaged: 2020-05-14 17:04:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 15,171
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19277644
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShadowIsEm/pseuds/ShadowIsEm
Summary: Levi has practically looked after Eren since he was a small child, and as each year goes by they get closer. Eren loves to thank Levi with an innocent kiss, but as he gets older, those kisses become a lot less innocent to him.





	1. 5 years old

**Author's Note:**

> Each chapter is a new year, they are short and refer to a key moment that happened within that year.

“Lee-bi!” A soft knock on his door cut him off from his drifting thoughts. It could only be one person because Levi wasn’t very open to guests coming without notifying him beforehand. A soft sigh left his lips as he removed his feet from the table and planted them on the ground to stand up. The knocks continued tapping on his front door, followed by whines calling ‘Lee-bi’. Levi knew he could say his name properly, he just thought it annoyed him when he said it wrong, but honestly Levi thought it was really adorable.

He unlocked the front door and slowly pulled it open, the chain lock still hooked in as he peeked down at the little boy who practically shot his hand inside once there was enough space for his small arm to squeeze through.

“Lee-bi! Lee! Let me in!” He whined as his fingertips lightly hooked to the hem of Levi’s shirt. Levi couldn’t help it as the corners of his lips curved and he let out a gentle breath.

“If you want me to open, you have to pull your arm out, it’ll come off if I try to remove the chain and your arm is there. Come on now Eren, step back”, he instructed to the five-year-old who reluctantly obeyed, slipping his hand out the crack and bringing it to his chest as he expectantly waited for Levi to open the door. Levi never thought he was good with children. He disliked kids, they were messy, loud and too much of a hassle, besides, he was too young for parenting regardless, being only twenty-one. However, this particular kid didn’t seem to fit in the category of children that he disliked. He wasn’t a brat, he was fairly polite, and he wasn’t out of control.

Eren’s parents owned the apartment complex Levi lived in and the child seemed to be very fond of him. He was often asked to babysit the kid by his parents due to Eren taking such an interest in him. Levi had no idea why the kid was so set on spending time with him, but he didn’t mind. It seemed Eren spent more time with Levi than he did with his own parents, Levi did get some benefits for the time he spends taking care of their son. His rent was certainly much cheaper, and he was paid per hour, when they ask him to babysit at least. Sometimes Eren just turns up at Levi’s door without notice. Levi didn’t mind that.

Levi closed the door to slide out the chain lock before he started to pull it open again but the process was sped up when Eren burst in and hugged Levi’s legs cheerfully. “Someone’s excited, I just saw you last night and here you are acting like it’s been years”, Levi smiled fondly as he pushed the child off his legs so he could crouch down to be closer to Eren’s height.

“I’m always happy to see Lee-bi!” Eren reached forward to pinch Levi’s cheeks gently and pulled them up slightly as if trying to get Levi to smile. “You always look so glum! Never happy to see me!”

“I’m always happy to see you”, Levi insisted but Eren gave out an unconvinced huff as he turned away and crossed his arms high above his chest. Levi breathed out a bit before he managed a smile of adoration, reaching to pinch Eren’s cheek playfully. “See? I’m smiling, I only smile for you after all. It’s not often people get me to smile you know”, Levi stated, because it was true. He only managed to smile for Eren because he seemed like the only person worth smiling for.

Eren giggled and leaned forward to wrap his arms around Levi’s shoulders, hugging him tightly. Levi let out a small chuckle as he secured his arms around Eren’s lower back and stood up straight, Eren settling comfortably on Levi’s hip like a mother holding her child.

“What do you want to do today?” Levi asked as he carried Eren into the living room but Eren pointed towards the kitchen to which he obliged.

“It’s raining outside today so we can’t play in the garden”, Eren pouted cutely and Levi mirrored the pout as if it saddened him likewise. It really didn’t, he didn’t like playing outside because Eren would always end up getting dirty.

“Yes, because rain means mud”, Levi said and Eren rolled his eyes a bit, allowing Levi to sit him on the kitchen counter.

“And mud makes everything dirty. We don’t like mud”.

“No, we certainly do not!” Levi poked Eren’s nose as he looked around in his cupboards to make Eren something to eat, because obviously he was a bit hungry if he immediately gestured for Levi to take him to the kitchen. Levi has only lived here for two years and he knew Eren like he was his own child, since he was three and Levi was nineteen, close to turning twenty.

“Ugh shit”, Levi had to place his hand over his mouth at his own profanity, glancing at Eren and muttering an apology to him. “I haven’t gone shopping in a while, so I can only give you pretzels for now. Sorry brat, no cooking today”, Levi tossed him some pretzels, Eren extending his arms and narrowly catching the packet. He seemed to enjoy Levi’s cooking, which was nice because it gave Levi the chance to improve on his skills since Eren was basically the only person who ate with him on a regular basis. It forced him to make healthy meals rather than bow out and buy tv dinners and take out and all that crap.

“Can’t we go shopping today then?” Eren asked as he kicked his legs back and forth while tearing the packet open at the top and fishing out some of the pretzels, practically shovelling them into his small mouth.

“I dunno maybe- Eren, please slow it down, you’re not an animal!” Levi placed his hand over Eren’s to stop him from over-ingesting and possibly choking on his food. It has happened way too many times.

“Bghk umn ungree!”

“Don’t talk with your mouth full Eren, chew slowly and close your mouth when you do!” Levi scolded and Eren glared at him slightly, but did as Levi said, before he swallowed the food and sighed out, repeating that he was hungry but now Levi could actually understand him.

“Doesn’t mean you can forget your manners”.

“Sorry Lee”, Eren pouted at Levi who sighed and leaned closer to Eren, flicking his nose playfully.

“Does your mother know you’re here?” Levi asked as he leaned back on the counter, watching Eren enjoy his pretzels at a more reasonable pace at least. Eren may as well just live with Levi from how often he’s here actually, most days he’d end up spending the night at Levi’s and he got Levi to take him to kindergarten and occasionally pick him up when he could.

“She told me to come here. She’s going out tonight”, he said as he ate the last pretzel, shimmying off the counter and hopping onto the floor to throw the empty packet into the bin.

“Ah, I’m guessing you want to stay here tonight?” Levi tilted his head and a cheery grin extended over Eren’s face which was confirmation enough for Levi. He let out a small chuckle and approached the boy, carding his fingers though the brunettes soft head of hair.

“Lee-bi!” Eren jumped up with his arms extended towards the adult.

“What Eren? Are you still hungry?”

“Yes! But that’s not what I wanted to say!” Eren pouted before he waved Levi down, looking around suspiciously as if he were going to tell Levi a very serious secret. He gave the little boy a smile and humoured him, kneeling down to his level and waiting for Eren to get to the point. The child said no words, but he did grasp the collar of Levi’s shirt and pull him closer, pressing his small lips against Levi’s for the briefest of moments before he stepped away, a giant smile stretching over his features.

Levi was a bit surprised, but he managed to give Eren a confused smile, raising his fingers to his mouth. “Hey, what was that for brat?” He asked and Eren shrugged his shoulders dramatically, taking Levi’s big hand in his small one and tugging on it, walking alongside him as he went towards the door.

“Can we go to the store now?”

_______


	2. 6 years old

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nightmares

“Lee-bi”, a tired voice whined, and Levi looked away from the pages scattered across his desk, looking back at his bedroom door, Eren pushing it wider while rubbing his sleepy eyelids with his small hands.

Babysitting didn’t even require Eren’s parents to call and ask, Eren would usually arrived with a bag of his clothes, which he usually ends up leaving here anyway, and a letter from his parents saying that they appreciate the help. It seemed that Eren slept here every second day and visited the rest. Levi didn’t mind him being here though, he made the house much livelier.

“What is it Eren?” Levi smiled and turned his rotating chair to face Eren who shuffled over to Levi in his blue onesie. “It’s pretty late, why’re you up? Did you have a nightmare?” Levi heaved Eren into his lap and sat back, looking at the boy with risen eyebrows.

Eren’s lips quivered and his eyes swelled with tears, frantically bobbing his head up and down, saying ‘yes’ to Levi’s question. He was such a fragile boy and he sometimes acted younger than six when other times he acted older than that. He had nightmares every once in a while, most of the time he would call to Levi to come and sit at his bedside until he fell asleep. He didn’t really come to Levi on his own though.

“That’s no good, what happened in the dream? Can you tell me?”

“Giants”, Eren said, throwing his arms up to show that there were big people. “There were giants”.

“Giants huh? And what did they do?”

“They ate people”, Eren trembled a bit at the thought, and Levi tilted his head as he hummed, waiting for Eren to say more. “I was hiding in a hole under a tree and I saw one of them grab you”, Eren started to shake, pressing his palms against his eyes as he tried not to ball. “I tried to stop them, but one grabbed me and I…” Levi brought Eren close to his chest and kissed the top of his head reassuringly.

“There are no giants here Eren… I’m here and I’m not going anywhere I promise, I’d be the best person to keep you safe from giants. I’d be able to protect you from them. They’d never get me, and they’d certainly won’t get you, I’d never allow that to happen”, Levi smiled and Eren sighed as if relieved, wrapping his arms around Levi’s neck and burying his head under Levi’s chin.

“Can I sleep here tonight? With you?” His request made Levi smile and he hummed, standing up and holding Eren carefully as he made his way towards his bed.

“I was going to head to bed anyway, so I don’t see why you can’t stay with me tonight. Would that make you feel better?” Eren let out a keen ‘mhm!’ and Levi chuckled as he sat on the edge of his bed and set Eren on the mattress, telling him to get under the covers.

Levi removed his shoes and placed them aside, looking over at Eren who watched him closely, waiting for him to get into the bed himself. He gave a smile and switched off the pedestal light before he got beneath the covers, feeling Eren automatically cuddle into his side.

“Sleep well Eren”, Levi leaned down to kiss Eren’s head again, but the boy looked up briefly placing his lips on Levi’s in a peck. Levi wasn’t particularly used to these kisses, despite Eren always giving them to him spontaneously quite often.

“Goodnight Lee-bi”.

______


	3. 7 years old

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Picnic

“Levi!” Eren pointed up at a kite in the sky, kicking his heels into Levi’s chest lightly while his other hand rested atop Levi’s head. Eren enjoyed going out to the park and Levi enjoyed seeing Eren happy.

Today was a particular day that Levi had time to go out with the kid. Eren would ask to sit on Levi’s shoulders and he’d allow it until Eren was too big for him to carry. He was getting bigger steadily, but at the healthy pace necessary for a seven-year-old. It was Eren’s birthday today and he wanted to have a picnic with Levi before he had his birthday party. Eren’s parents were having a few of Eren’s friends come over to celebrate, but Eren was incredibly upset when Levi said he couldn’t come because he had work.

To make up for it, Levi promised he’d take Eren out for a picnic in the morning and that was exactly what he was doing. Levi had already given Eren his birthday present which was a mechanical train which seemed to really please the child, thank god, Levi was terrible with gifts and he was never sure whether Eren would be happy or not.

Levi trudged up the hill with a child on his shoulders, a rolled-up blanket under his right arm and his left hand holding a basket with some light food and drinks. Once they reached a suitable spot under an oak tree, Eren was lowered from Levi’s shoulders which set the child free to frolic in the grass while Levi set the picnic spot.

The moment Levi was able to sit on the blanket and relax, Eren rushed towards him with a load of weeds and small flowers bundled in his arms. “Levi! I found flowers!” Eren exclaimed as he fell forward onto his knees and tossed the plants in front of Levi’s feet.

“So, I see”.

“Can I put them in your hair? You’ll look nice!” Eren giggled as he lifted one of the dandelions and stuck it into Levi’s hair before Levi had even given him and answer. He allowed Eren to decorate his hair silently, knowing that he should be quiet and give the birthday boy exactly what he wanted. Eren couldn’t stop giggling and Levi imagined he looked completely ridiculous, but he managed to chuckle along with the kid, pleased to see him happy.

“Now do me!” Eren exclaimed as he tilted his head closer to Levi expectantly. Levi blinked a bit before he looked down at the array of weeds and flowers before he picked up the daisy and stuck the stem in the curve of Eren’s ear. Levi playfully prodded the stem of one of the weeds into Eren’s nose and ear to make the child giggle which he did successfully.

“Are you hungry?” Levi asked as he placed the weed on the blanket, satisfied with just the one daisy he placed on Eren’s ear.

“Ham and cheese!” Eren cheered, knowing exactly what Levi prepared.

“I’ll take that as a yes then”, Levi hummed as he opened the basket and pulled out a ham and cheese sandwich wrapped securely in cling wrap. Eren gratefully took the food and thanked Levi, unwrapping it and slowly nibbling on it.

Levi allowed his eyes to look around the park, several other families and couples walking around with dogs and children running around wildly. Levi couldn’t imagine taking care of anything else other than Eren. Whether it be a dog or another snotty brat, he could only see himself with this kid. A small finger poked at his cheek and he looked over at the birthday boy who grinned widely, seeking attention from Levi.

“Are you happy?” Levi poked Eren’s stomach gently which made the child squirm a bit.

“Yes, very happy, thank you Levi!” Eren draped his arms over Levi’s shoulders and nuzzled his nose into his neck affectionately. Levi noticed a woman with her lover look over at him and gushing at the sight. Levi wished he could gloat about Eren being his kid, but he didn’t have that right. Eren wasn’t his kid.

“Happy birthday brat”, Levi ruffled Eren’s hair which made the kid whine and push his hand away. Eren smiled at him happily before he leaned forward and pecked Levi on the lips, giving him a hug after.

“Thank you, Lee,”.


	4. 8 years old

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Missing

“Hey, Eren! Don’t wander off like that please?” Levi called when he saw the eight-year-old meander his way to the other side of the clothing store. Eren’s mother asked Levi if he could go clothes shopping with Eren, which was a bit redundant because Levi usually did without her having to ask him. Eren was growing bigger, he was already up to Levi’s shoulder in height, much to his displeasure. Even Eren was going to be taller than him one day.

“I’m within sight!” Eren called back as he looked at a batman shirt, grunting in boredom before he turned back to Levi who walked over to him and took his hand.

“Yeah, but try not to go off too far okay?” Levi gave a soft sigh as he squeezed Eren’s hand gently and went off to look at some more clothes. He got distracted by a suit in the adult section, his lips pursing in interest as he walked over to inspect it, a small smile wafting over his features. Levi always liked to dress fancy, it made him feel dignified and professional.

After a few minutes of inspecting the variety of clothes he suddenly remembered what he was actually here for, giving out a breath before he turned on his heel to go back to Eren. After briefly looking around the children’s section with Eren nowhere to be found, Levi started to grow concerned.

“Eren?” He called as he spun in his place, the kid nowhere in sight. His heart started to pound in his chest as a bit of anxiety grew within him. Where was Eren? He was panicking not because it was someone else’s kid and he’d be blamed for it, but because he didn’t know if he could actually handle losing Eren in general. That child was the most important thing in Levi’s life after all. That kid was so fucking dumb.

“Eren!” Levi called louder, his eyes darting around each isle in the store, realising Eren was in fact no longer here.

“Eren?! Eren?!” Levi could feel the blood rush to his head as panic coursed through his veins, unable to catch his breath and calm himself down. He would never be able to forgive himself if he lost Eren.

He hurried out the store onto the sidewalk, looking down both sides for the boy, a cloud of frost leaving his lips as he panted desperately. He called out to Eren again, his eyes fogging with concern as despaired tears rushed to the surface of his eyes.

He was not religious, but he prayed to himself that he’d find Eren, that he was okay. In the middle of his mental prayer, he heard a series of wailing and Eren rushed towards Levi from around the corner leading into an alleyway. That is the absolute best place for Eren to be isn’t it?

“Eren!” Levi gasped as he kneeled, allowing Eren to crash into him and envelope his arms over Levi’s shoulders, crying heavily as he repeated Levi’s name to him. Levi felt a sense of relief and pure joy as he picked Eren up and kissed his head multiple times, sending a mental ‘thank you’ to God. Once the feeling of relief faded he set Eren on his feet, asking him where the _hell_ had he gone, and that Levi told him not to leave his sight. Fuck, he had barely been looking at those suits for five minutes! He nearly had a heart attack.

“Where on earth did you go Eren?! You had me worried sick!” Levi shook Eren’s shoulders and the boy wailed as he spluttered a series of apologies to Levi.

“I saw a kitten outside so-so I went after it and I got lost”, he started to cry more, and Levi narrowed his eyes. All this trouble for a fucking cat?

“I-I ran into a man and-and he offered me candy and said that he’d help me find you”, Eren wailed more and Levi’s heart dropped at what Eren was describing.

“And what did you do?” Christ, he hoped he didn’t have to drive Eren to the Emergency centre because he was drugged by candy he accepted from a stranger. He told Eren not to wander off where Levi couldn’t see him, and he knew for a fact that he wasn’t allowed to talk to strangers or accept anything from them. Levi told him all these things and he prayed he at least remembered one of those things.

“I ran away”, Eren whimpered and Levi sighed out in relief, pulling Eren closer and kissing his forehead.

“Good boy, that was smart. Just don’t ever do that again to me. You’re going to kill me if you scare me like this! I couldn’t handle losing you Eren”, Levi admitted and stood up, Eren immediately stepping up and hugging Levi’s body, burying his face in Levi’s chest.

“I’m sorry Lee”, Eren apologised and stepped back, taking Levi’s hand and pulling him down to kiss his cheeks then his mouth, stunning the older male. “That’s to show how sorry I am. I promise I won’t scare you like that again”, Eren hugged Levi again who relaxed and wrapped his arms around the boy, marvelling in his relief that Eren was okay.


	5. 9 years old

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Broken

“Levi! Look here!” Eren waved from his place by the park swings, Levi nodding in acknowledgement before he looked at Carla with a small smile. Levi was not very close with Grisha and Carla personally, but it seemed like they depended on him more than anything. They did trust him with their child of course.

Carla decided to join Eren and Levi to the park today since she didn’t have any work to do. The way Levi interacted with her was completely different to how he interacted with Eren. He was comfortable around Eren and smiled a lot, but with adults or any other person, he was nonchalant and professional.

“I’m sorry we make you look after him so much”, Carla smiled bashfully but Levi shook his head. It was already apparent to him that Carla and Grisha weren’t the most caring of parents. If they cared about their son, they wouldn’t let him practically live with a tenant and they would take more interest in him. Levi wasn’t going to complain, he loved looking after Eren.

“He’s a delight”, Levi looked over at the nine-year-old as he jumped off the swings and chased after another kid, seemingly playing tag or some shit.

“I know that”, she chuckled slightly. “But he’s not your kid yet you look after him so much. I have no idea how to thank you, we’re indebted to you Levi”, she shifted slightly closer to him and he felt her place her hand on his shoulder. His muscles stiffened, and he kept his eyes on Eren to avoid looking at her.

“Uh… That won’t be necessary really, it’s no problem at all”, he looked at her this time and she managed a small smile before she retracted her hand and placed it in her lap. Whenever Levi looked at Carla, he couldn’t stop seeing Eren in her features. Eren certainly looked a lot like his mother and Levi wasn’t sure how to feel about that, seeing as Carla made him very uneasy.

“You’re so considerate”, she shifted even closer, her side pressing itself against Levi’s and he tensed, wishing he could scoot away but if he did that, he’d fall off the bench. “I wish Grisha was as considerate of our child as you are. He’s always so busy that I barely get the chance to…” Levi leaned away a bit when she tried to press herself closer.

“I’m sorry to hear that Ma’am”.

“Call me Carla, Levi”, she whispered and leaned even closer, but the action was cut off by a piercing scream from the playground, both adults averting their eyes to see Eren rolling on the ground and gripping his arm while he screaming desperately.

“Levi! Levi! Ugh! Levi! Help!” He screamed, and Levi was already full on sprinting towards the despaired child before Carla could even register what had happened.

“Eren! Shit! What happened? What’s the matter?”, Levi kneeled beside him and lifted him to a sitting position, the other kids and parents circling around them to see what was happening. He wasn’t getting a proper response from Eren, so he looked at the other kids sternly, demanding an answer from them.

“He… He fell and landed on his arm and there was a crack!” The one kid said and another interfered.

“That’s not what happened! You pushed him!”

“I did not!”

“Shut up! I don’t care if you pushed him or if he fell! I just wanted to know how he ended up like this!” Levi snapped and they all stopped talking.

“Ugh! Levi! It hurts Levi! I can’t… I can’t move it!” Eren had tears streaming down his cheeks as he looked up at the male desperately. Carla was already next to Levi and on the phone calling her husband seeing as he was a doctor.

“Yeah, I know Eren. I’m gonna pick you up okay?” Levi said soothingly as he slid his arms under Eren’s body and hoisted him up into his arms. Eren wasn’t a very small kid anymore so it certainly weighed a lot on Levi’s arms, but he could still carry him. Levi walked with Carla’s mom away from the playground and to the complex which was only a few blocks away from the park.

“Ow ow ow! Shit it hurts!” Eren complained and Levi allowed that swear to slip seeing as Eren was grieving over the pain having broken his arm.

“It’s okay baby, mommy’s here”, Carla leaned over and kissed Eren on the head, but he looked at her with a surprised teary-eyed expression, almost as though he had no idea she was there to begin with.

“You’re gonna be fine bud okay?” Levi sighed and pressed his forehead to Eren’s briefly before retracting.

“C-Can you give me a kiss to-to make it better?” Eren sniffled grossly and Levi chuckled at the request as he leaned over a bit and kissed Eren’s forehead, Eren suddenly leaning up so that their lips touched instead. He let out a painful laugh as he looked up at Levi. “Better…”


	6. 10 years old

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> School

“Levi! I can’t find it!” Eren peeked from around the corner in Levi’s guest room to look at the adult who was lounging on the couch with his laptop propped on his lap, editing a document for work. Eren stayed here abnormally often, this place turning into his home as years passed by, so most of his belongings remained in Levi’s home than in his own.

“Eren, how am I supposed to know what you’re looking for if you don’t tell me?” Levi sighed out as he placed the laptop aside and stood up to head to the room, which was more Eren’s room than a guest one. Whenever Levi saw people that could be labelled friends, he always went out, they never came here. The only person that came to Levi’s was Eren and scarcely Eren’s parents.

“My tie! I’m going to get in trouble if I forget it again!” The ten-year-old expressed, wearing his elementary school uniform but the only thing missing was the tie, well, other than his appearance which was overall dishevelled, and Levi would no doubt have to fix up his appearance once the article of clothing was located of course.

“Are you sure it’s not at your house maybe?” Levi placed his hands on his thighs and leaned down to Eren’s height to stare at him seriously.

“No, why would it be? I remember I had it on Friday, and I came here directly after school!” Eren dropped to the floor and crawled under his bed, shovelling out the heaps of clothes that were buried underneath it, basically showing Levi how much of a messy child he was.

“Why is your room so dirty Eren? Maybe if you kept it clean, we wouldn’t have this problem”, Levi said slowly as he opened the wardrobe, nearly having a heart attack at the mere state of the inside. “I’m going to ignore this for now, but when you get back, you are going to clean this room top to bottom! This is not debatable!” Levi wagged his index finger at Eren who’s cheeks redden a bit, but he nodded obediently.

After about five minutes of Levi looking through the shelves in the wardrobe, he pulled out the missing clothing piece and tossed it at the child who cheered happily and rushed to his full-length mirror to try and do his tie up. Levi leaned on the door and watched him struggle a bit, but he knew Eren could do it, he’s shown the child how to make a tie countless times and like hell he was going to coddle him because he didn’t pay attention.

After a few minutes of knotting and untying he finally succeeded in making it properly, but it looked a bit jagged. He seemed proud of himself and Levi also felt proud, but he still couldn’t let Eren go to school looking like a hooligan. He kneeled in front of the boy and made up the tie once more, Eren watching closely and saying that ‘tomorrow I’ll make it better than even you could!’

Once Eren’s appearance was satisfactory, Levi left the room and snatched the keys from the hook by the door, watching Eren pick up his school bag and hoist it onto his shoulders before rushing to walk with Levi out the door and outside the complex. Luckily for Levi, Eren’s school was only a ten-minute drive from the complex so he didn’t really have an issue with dropping Eren off and picking him up. Eren said he preferred Levi picking him up to his parents picking him up.

They pulled up outside the school, screaming kids running around and Levi was so glad that he didn’t have to look after wild brats like that, even though Eren could be a little difficult, he wouldn’t trade him for the world.

“Okay, get out of my car brat”, Levi said playfully, reaching over and straightening Eren’s tie and patting down a few hairs. Eren gave him an appreciative smile before he reached over and grasped Levi’s cheeks, veering in to peck his lips innocently. Eren did that a lot it seemed, Levi didn’t complain since it seemed to make Eren happy when he did it. He never asked Eren to kiss him though, Eren always did it first without warning.

“Bye Lee-vi!” Eren sang as he pushed the door open and hopped out, walking into the school with a skip in his step. At least he said ‘Lee-vi’ instead of ‘Lee-bi’ now.


	7. 11 years old

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Grocery shopping

“Levi, can we make pizza tonight?” Eren requested as he held the pepperoni pizza out to the adult, watching his silver eyes narrow at him in disapproval. He didn’t need to say anything more because the eleven-year-old exhaled heavily and went to put it away. Grocery shopping, something Levi preferred to do alone because whenever Eren came along, it was like he wanted to buy the entire store.

“We never get anything nice”, Eren complained and a humourless laugh escaped Levi as he placed his hand on Eren’s head and pulled him back into his chest.

“If that’s what you think, I guess I better stop buying you chocolate for lunches”, he warned and Eren immediately spluttered to take back what he had said, Levi ruffling his hair and pushing his gently to continue collecting what they actually needed. Eren would usually go off and look around the store while Levi actually got what they needed, trusting that Eren won’t run off like last time unless he wanted all hell to fall onto him delivered by Levi.

It seemed the worst punishment Levi could hand out to the kid was taking away his sweet food privileges (even though he didn’t let Eren eat that much junk food), cancel out TV time or send Eren to his actual house. Eren hated going home the most though… Every time he came back from going to his actual parents, he looked incredibly depressed, expressing that being there felt so meaningless since it was like his parents barely took notice of him.

At one point, Levi was worried that the reason for Eren’s parents being so neglectful was because he looked over the kid so much and was withholding them from being together; but he realised that that couldn’t possibly be true because Levi never forcefully withheld Eren from them and in the beginning of Eren coming to him, they could’ve at any point come to take him home and Levi never would’ve prevented them from doing so. No, they just didn’t care about their son nearly enough.

“Levi!” A surprised voice reached his ears and he looked over to see Carla making her way over to him with her grocery basket hanging in her arm. His eyes hardened instinctively as they usually would when dealing with anyone other than Eren. “What a pleasant surprise!” She let out a hearty laugh and he forced a smile back at her, hoping she wouldn’t try to flirt with him again. She was a married woman yet still made passes at him…

He also doubted Eren would be please if Levi _actually_ started dating his mother. Not because it would be going against her relationship with his father, since he was even less close with his father than he was with his mother, but because he didn’t particularly enjoy being with his mother. Luckily for them both, Levi was not interested in her in the slightest.

“Carla… How nice to see you”, Levi said in a polite tone and he added two loaves of bread to his cart.

“I see you’re grocery shopping as well”.

“It seems I am”. _Ugh. Small talk._

“Levi can I get- “Eren stopped in his tracks as he saw his mother, a frown appearing on his face as his hands that were holding a packet of chips hung at his hips. Without missing a beat, Levi already told him ‘no’ before anything else could be said. Eren looked to him with a glare and walked up to him.

“Why not? Can’t we just get it to share? It’s the new flavour!”

“Eren. Am I speaking another language to you when I say ‘no’?”

But Levi!”

“Eren! Listen to Levi”, Carla scolded lightly and a looked flashed across Eren face that was so brief Levi wasn’t sure whether he had imagined it or not. Eren’s eyes narrowed in disgust at her, like he was questioning why _she_ thought she could tell him what to do. He exhaled deeply and marched himself off to put it away.

“I’m sorry Levi”.

“Why are you apologising?”

“He’s my child and I hate for him to be rude to you”, if anything, Eren was more rude to you than he was to me, Levi thought. “Do you still have quite a bit to get?” She glanced down at his cart and he cleared his throat, giving a slow nod before she chuckled dismissively. “I imagine Eren can be quite a bother with shopping, since I’ve already got everything I need, why don’t I just take him home? His father is finishing his shift soon as well”, she suggested and Levi bit his lip, wanting to deny her offer but he truly had no right to.

“He’s your child. You have every right to him, I don’t mind”, he really did mind but he would never say that to her face.

“Of course, just thought I’d give you the peace of shopping”, she touched his bicep and he clenched his jaw, noticing Eren drag himself over to them with a frown.

“Eren, come sweetheart, we’re going now”, she held out her hand to him but Eren frowned and brought his hands to his chest as he looked at her in confusion.

“What? I’m going with Levi though…”

“No honey, I’m taking you home. Daddy’s coming home early today so we can have a nice family meal, isn’t that lovely?”

“I don’t want to, I wanna stay with Levi”, he walked up to Levi’s side and hugging him, digging his head into Levi’s chest stubbornly and the older male gave a conflicted expression.

“Eren, stop acting like that! We’re going now! Leave him to do his shopping! You’ve spent plenty of time with him now it’s time you come home!”

“Eren listen to your mother”, Levi said sternly and the brunette looked up a him with a pout and quivering lips.

“But- “

“No but’s Eren… Besides if you behave… I make pizza for you on Friday”, he whispered the last part into Eren’s ear and his green eyes immediately lit up with excitement before he agreed, Carla bidding Levi a goodbye and starting to walk off. Eren started walking but halted, immediately turning back to Levi and taking him by the shoulders, standing on the tips of his toes and planting a small kiss on his mouth before withdrawing.

“Bye Levi!”

____


	8. 12 years old

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Friends

"Levi! Can I go to my friend's house on Saturday, please?" The twelve-year-old whined to the adult who was preparing some chicken schnitzel for them to eat that evening. Eren would always do this, act as if Levi was his father and had that kind of authority, even though it practically seemed like that was the case.

At this point, Eren only went home once a week to tell his parents how school was going and that he was staying at Levi again. Levi didn't see the point in him telling them because they all knew he was staying there whether they liked it or not. They trusted Levi with everything they had, he was good to their son and he never complained about taking care of Eren, they still paid him even though Levi always insisted against it. Looking over Eren was more of a pleasure than a chore.

Levi glanced at him with risen eyebrows as he covered the chicken breast in crumbs. "Why're you asking me? I'm not your father", Levi stated the obvious.

"Yeah but, if I asked my parents, they'd most likely tell me to ask you", Eren also pretty much stated the obvious and Levi rolled his eyes again, stopping his preparation and turning to face Eren with a plain expression.

"Which friend?"

"Armin! You know him, we've known- "

"Yeah, don't need the backstory, I know who Armin is, twit", he snorted, obviously knowing who Armin is since he's met the kid multiple times. He was a good kid, a bit of a whimp but Levi liked him, he just didn't want Eren to be hanging around the wrong crowds. He'd kill Eren if he found out he was mixing with sketchy people. What can he say? He was a little protective of Eren, he loved the kid after all.

Briefly, Levi wondered if Eren's parents knew any of Eren's friends? He wondered if they knew anything at all about his interests, seeing as Eren barely went to them and he acted like he wasn't comfortable with sharing any sort of information with his parents. Levi could somewhat understand that, seeing as Eren's parents never really made any sort of effort to know their child. Luckily Eren was still a bit too young to fully grasp the seriousness of his parents' neglectful nature... It would no doubt cause some sort of resentment in Eren's future which is why Levi intended to make Eren's life as pleasant as he could with his own resources.

"Then that means you shouldn't have a problem with me going over to his? Just for like a few hours then his mom can drop me back here!"

"I can pick you up if you want, we may just go shopping on Saturday so we can go after I pick you up. Killing two birds with one stone", Levi hummed and Eren's face broke into a smile.

"Does that mean I can?"

"Yeah, sure, whatever", Levi rolled his eyes and Eren clapped his hands, placing his hands on Levi's shoulders and pulling him down to peck his lips before he dashed out of the kitchen cheering. Levi blinked away his brief surprise and let out a chuckle, happy to see Eren so cheerful.

______

 


	9. 13 years old

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren needs the talk.

“Levi?” Eren’s soft voice cut Levi off from his work, lifting his eyes from his laptop in his lap as he looked over at Eren who was staring at him from his peeking position by the wall, a nervous expression on his face. Levi tilted his head as he waited for Eren to talk but the teen just shifted in his position as if unsure what to say.

“Eren?” Levi spoke and Eren flinched a bit before his cheeks turned a bright shade of red as embarrassment flushed his features. Eren was not usually the bashful kind so seeing him like this was rather odd as well as pretty amusing. “Are you just gonna stand there staring or are you gonna tell me what’s gotten you so worked up?” He rose his brows at Eren with a bemused smile and Eren stuttered a bit.

“I… I took a nap”.

“Congratulations. What does that have to do with me?”

“I just… I don’t… I may be sick…” He looked down and Levi frowned a bit.

“Why what’s wrong with you?”

“It’s… It’s embarrassing to say out loud!” Eren exclaimed and it took Levi about three seconds before he brought his hand up to his mouth to prevent himself from laughing. If it was what he thought it was, he would be very surprised that Eren was not in touch with the logistics of sex, then again it wasn’t like his parents were around to give him any sort of ‘talk’ though Levi was sure they did that shit at school, whether it be amongst friends or in the classes.

“Alright, hang on”, Levi put his laptop down and stood up to approach the teen who immediately hid himself a bit more behind the wall, Levi chuckling a bit as he got closer. “Lemme guess? You’ve got a boner?” He crossed his arms as he stood beside Eren now, eyeing him now that he could see his full body but it was difficult to identify when Eren had the entire front of his body pressed against the wall.

“Is… Is that what it’s called?”

“Eren have you never heard of porn or sex?” Levi gently took Eren’s wrist and pulled him off the wall which confirmed his suspicions. “What do you and your friends talk about at school?” Levi could remember when he was a young teen he and his mates would discuss different girls and sex positions they saw in magazines, when Levi thought back on it, it amazed him how much shit those magazines dramatized.

“Anime! We don’t talk about… About our…”

“You’re so cute”, Levi accidentally said as he genuinely found Eren’s nativity cute.

“Don’t call me cute!” Eren snapped as his face reddened even more and he tried to jerk his wrist out of Levi’s hold. “I’ll just- I’ll just figure it out myself then! Forget I said anything!” He insisted and Levi laughed a bit more which only succeeded in frustrating Eren more.

“Listen Eren, this is completely normal for guys”, Levi stated and Eren looked up at him with his annoyed frown. “I’m sure every one of your little friends get it too. Okay let’s first figure out how much I need to catch you up on; do you know what sex is?”

“It’s… What happens between a woman and a man which eventually ends up to having a kid”, Eren mumbled and Levi rolled his eyes at that dull response. He wasn’t wrong but Levi figured a kid who was getting his first boner spontaneously would only have minimal knowledge. Levi wasn’t one of those people who was bashful about these types of things as it was a normal part of life and everyone had to know about it for what it was, and Eren was at that age that he should know after all.

“Yes. But it can be done between girls with girls and boys with boys and obviously girls with boys”, he said matter-of-factly and Eren frowned a bit. “What you’re experiencing now is normal, your body feels ready to, I guess scientifically, fertilize eggs which is where the women and pregnancy come along and yadda yadda. But most of the time people have sex to feel good”.

“Feel good? Does having children feel good?”

“Not what I meant!” Levi shook his head. “Sex, the activity feels good but you should only do it with someone you find attractive, and when you’re older and legal not to mention. But you should realistically do it with someone you love and trust”, Eren was silent for a few seconds, having forgotten about his problem in the mix of Levi’s talk, before suddenly his eyes grew wide and he gripped Levi’s shirt, looking up into his eyes, or pretty much directly into them seeing as he was only a few inches shorter than Levi now.

“You said guys can do it? I love and trust you so can’t I do it with you?”

Levi’s face paled and he desperately shook his head at Eren. “No! Eren! First of all you’re not 18 so I’m not allowed to have sex with you, and secondly- “

“So when I’m 18 I can?”

“Eren! Listen to me!” He laughed a bit and placed his hands on Eren’s shoulders. “Do you find guys attractive? Or do you find girls attractive?” Eren stared at him for a few seconds before he shrugged. “You should really watch some porn”, Levi muttered to himself, since porn initially was how Levi figured out he was bisexual though he’s only been with a man once in his life.“You shouldn’t have sex yet anyway so you have time to figure that out. Right now you have to take care of these things yourself because when you see or think of something that makes you feel sexually aroused, this is gonna happen, and to get rid of it, you need to masturbate”, he gestured to Eren’s tent and the kid was reminded of what his problem was once more, his face going bright red as he removed his hands from Levi’s shirt and covered himself shyly.

“Does this sort of thing happen to you too?” Levi cleared his throat and tugged a little on the collar of his shirt before he nodded to Eren who blushed and looked down towards Levi’s crotch.

“I’m not hard right now Eren!”

“Can I see when you are then?”

“Eren!” Levi blushed, suddenly made bashful by the string of questions Eren was delivering to him.

“How do I know how to do it then? Masturbate?”

“You just stroke yourself, touch yourself until you manage to find a method that makes you feel good. Just… You’ll know you’ve fixed it when you cum, which is basically when uh…” Now Levi was feeling awkward as he looked down into Eren’s big eyes, Levi feeling a little strained as he tried to describe what cumming was. “When stuff comes out”.

“Why don’t you show me?”

“I’m not going to do that Eren. Firstly, I as an adult can’t touch you like that because it’s illegal, also please don’t tell when it happens and you try doing it”, he rubbed the back of his neck and Eren looked down on himself before back up at Levi with a shy smile.

“Alright Levi. Thanks for… Thanks for talking to me, I’ll try and fix it”, he gave a nervous smile before he stepped closer to Levi and kissed his mouth, Levi’s cheeks reddening a bit as the kid stepped away and hurried off to his room slowly, deciding against telling Levi that it grew bigger when he kissed him.


	10. 14 years old

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> First break up

Levi leaned back against his car as he waited for Eren to exit the school, his eyes searching through the clumps of little children. He hated high school with a burning passion, it gave him bad memories that he preferred to not recall, but luckily all he had to do was pick Eren up from school. Often at times like these, Levi would think about the fact that Eren’s parents were really… Bad at their duty. They just left Eren to Levi, a man who was not related to them and had moved into their apartment complex at nineteen, fresh from high school.

Yet it seemed Levi was still a better parent than they ever were, despite him not having any parental experience. He learned rather quickly though, and he didn’t see the point in complaining, since he loved being with the kid.

A few teenage girls would look in Levi’s direction and giggle amongst themselves when he looked back. It was like they thought he was interested. The only kid in school he could tolerate was Eren, he couldn’t be bothered with the rest and he certainly wasn’t looking to fuck some school kids.

“Hi Levi”, the fourteen-year-old muttered, breaking Levi’s thoughts as he approached the older male with a rather forlorn expression. Usually Eren was super enthusiastic whenever Levi came to pick him up, so this was very unusual, if not a bit worrisome.

“What’s wrong?” Levi asked automatically and Eren looked at him for a brief moment before looking back down again, digging the toe of his shoe into the gravel. Levi couldn’t get over the fact that Eren was now a bit taller than he is, wishing he could go back to the time Eren was small and cute.

“It’s nothing, can we go home please?” He said dismissively and Levi crossed his arms, tilting his head a bit to look into Eren’s downcast eyes. Why was he avoiding talking about what was bothering him? Levi was going to find out one way or another.

“First tell me what’s wrong with you. Why do you look like someone kicked your puppy?”

“We don’t have a puppy…”

“Dumbass, it’s an expression”, Levi flicked Eren on the nose and rolled his eyes. “I can tell something’s up, so I suggest you start talking or else we’re not going anywhere”, He leaned back on his car again and sighed out, staring at Eren expectantly as the teen swayed a bit, clearly getting a bit impatient with Levi’s insisting on knowing what was wrong.

“It’s just…”

“Just?”

“Just that my girlfriend and I split… That’s all”, Eren shrugged his shoulders and Levi’s eyebrows rose to his hairline at Eren’s words. He had no idea Eren was dating someone… Eren hadn’t told him and Levi wondered why he didn’t notice or asked about it before. Eren must’ve noticed Levi’s shock and sighed out, stepping closer to the older male to say something in a softer voice. “I didn’t see a reason to tell you… We weren’t anything serious…”

“If it wasn’t serious, why’re you so upset?”

“It still sucks you know… She dumped me for the biggest dickhead in the school”, Eren moved to stand next to Levi, leaning back on the car glumly. Levi snorted out, thinking back to when he was in high school and the amount of times his girlfriends left him for other people. “On top of that, a lot of people are saying we split because I’m gay”, this made Levi do a double take and he turned away from Eren, trying not to burst out laughing.

“What’s so funny?” Eren glared at him and Levi waved his hand apologetically, returning his attention to the confused teen. Levi was just stunned that people still did shit like that. What does it matter if someone’s gay or not? He thought people were a lot more accepting when it came to that these days, yet here he was.

“Well… uh… Are you?” Levi chuckled out and Eren’s cheeks heated up.

“No! I’m not gay!” He almost seemed too defensive, but it only made Levi chuckle more.

“Then you’re not gay”, Levi shrugged his shoulders. “Who gives a fuck what other people say if you yourself know the facts?” Levi tilted his head and Eren blushed a bit before he looked away from Levi. Levi always did his best to give Eren advice, though he never thought he was any good at it, that was just his own opinion. If you know what you are, then that’s it. The people around you have nothing to do with it and if they want the truth, they should hear it from you.

Eren looked around before he looked at Levi, leaning close to him and kissing him on the mouth, making the older man step back in surprise. That was one hell of a time to do that. Just after they spoke about the fact that Eren wasn’t gay, now he kisses Levi in the middle of the parking lot?

“No wonder people think you’re gay!” Levi mocked and Eren’s cheeks brightened.

“I-I’m sorry… It’s just my way of… Thanking you… I wasn’t thinking”, Eren placed his hands on his cheeks as he felt himself burn in his embarrassment. Why did he do that?

“Let’s get going, you stupid brat”, Levi snorted as he ruffled Eren’s hair and went around the car to the drivers side. Eren took a few moments, lifting his hand to touch his lips before he turned away to opened the passengers door and climbed in.


	11. 15 years old

“Leeeeeviiiii!” The fifteen-year-old walked up behind Levi’s seat on the couch, placing his hands on his shoulders and rested his chin on top of Levi’s head to look at the show Levi was watching, which appeared to be the _Bates Motel._

“What do you want?”

“My phone is dead”, he mumbled sadly, and Levi let out a breath that resembled a chuckle, leaning his head back to look up at Eren who looked down at him. There was no denying it, Eren was practically Levi’s unofficial kid. At this point he only went home when Eren’s parents physically came to Levi and told Eren to come back. It never lasted long though, he’d always end up coming back an hour after leaving.

“And that’s my problem how?”

“While it’s charging, I thought maybe I’d keep you company”, Eren said like it was the most honourable thing he could possibly do. Levi let out a breath and paused his show, shifting on the couch to give enough space for Eren to sit beside him. “You’re getting old after all”, Eren added as he toppled over the back of the couch and onto the space Levi provided, his legs over the backrest and his head practically hanging off the edge.

“I’m only 30. You call that old?” Levi tilted his head to look at Eren’s upside down face.

“Yeah, you’ve practically got one foot in the grave at this point”.

“Well so do you if you don’t stop calling me old”, Levi pinched Eren’s side, which made the teen yelp out and fall off the couch, sitting up on the floor to give Levi a glare. Eren was extremely ticklish and unfortunately for him, Levi was not ticklish, which meant Levi had the full advantage to torture him if he wanted.

“Why don’t we play a game?” Eren sat up on the couch, looking at Levi with wide eyes.

“Depends on the game”.

“How about- “

“No alcohol allowed”, Levi said and Eren cut himself off, his devious plan falling flat on its head as he leaned back on the couch and pouted. “Don’t give that look you brat, you’re a minor, I can’t allow you to drink”, he said seriously and Eren groaned, sitting up straight and glaring at Levi.

“I don’t look like one! I’m already taller than you and you’re old!”

“What’d I say about calling me old?” Levi tackled Eren into the couch and poked at Eren’s sides, watching the boy laugh and struggle underneath him, helpless to defend himself against Levi’s efforts to tickle him. He whined and shouted out that he’s had enough and to please stop! He promised he wouldn’t call Levi old and the adult finally relented, giving Eren a triumphant smirk.

“I always win Eren”, Levi chuckled and Eren’s expression subsided a bit as he stared up at Levi, suddenly reaching up and gripping the sides of Levi’s head to pull him down and press their mouths against one another for the briefest of moments.

Eren hasn’t done that for a while and it was rather unusual time to do it right now.

“What was that for?” Levi gave him a confused smile and Eren took a moment before shaking his head and moving to sit up straight.

“For being such a good dad”, he mocked, and Levi puffed out his cheeks as Eren stood and walked around the couch to head to his room. Levi frowned and watched him walk off before calling and asking where he was going, asking that he thought Eren wanted to spend time with him while his phone charged. He couldn’t help but feel a little deflated. Maybe it was the period of puberty where kids tend to drift a bit from their parents, but Levi still missed seeing him as often as he used to.

“I’m sure it’s charged enough to be usable”.

“It’s only been like ten minutes”.

“That’s plenty time to charge up”, he concluded as he went into his room and kicked the door shut, leaving Levi feeling a bit sombre.

_____


	12. 16 years old

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fight

"Levi... I'm sorry", Eren broke the tense silence, looking over nervously at Levi who stood beside the open chair to Eren's left. He was pissed, Eren was well aware of that and he had no idea how to weasel his way out of this mess, Levi wasn't going to let it go no matter how much Eren apologised. "Levi..." Eren sighed and the older male shifted his eyes to look down at the sixteen-year-old that already had a bruise forming on his cheekbone. Eren was usually an extremely well-behaved student, never fought with people and did well in his grades, but for Levi to be called to the school to pick him up because he started a fight was certainly not how Levi wanted his day to go. He was contacted by the school because Eren referred to Levi as his guardian.

Of course he told them to contact Grisha or Carla, but it only ended as you'd typically expect with those people, shifting the responsibility of  _their_  son onto a tenant in their complex. So here he was, receiving a notice that assigned Eren a disciplinary hearing as well as for Levi to take him home for the rest of the day.

"Levi, really I am sorry!"

"Yes, so you've said repeatedly. Now, shut up", Levi closed his eyes and lowered his head a bit, wishing they could excuse the two so Levi could  _really_ give Eren a piece of his mind. He wasn't one to display his emotions around other people he wasn't accustomed to, so he didn't want to speak to Eren about it in front of the secretary as well as the other boy Eren had fought with who sat beside his mother.

"Uh... Mr Ackerman?" The lady spoke up and his eyes opened to look at her, pushing himself off the wall to accept the paper. She explained that the date and reason was listed on said page which Levi felt was pointless of her to do, since he had eyes and a brain to figure that out himself. He looked over at the other kid and his parent and gave a firm nod, to which the kid glared, and the mother looked away in displeasure.

Eren immediately got up from his seat and followed Levi out the office and down the hallway towards the exit. It was painfully silent and Eren was trying to think of something he could say to Levi that wouldn't piss him off more than necessary. Eventually they reached Levi's car and the older male opened the passenger's side open for him and stared blankly at the kid.

"Levi".

"Eren, shut the fuck up and get in the car", Levi scoffed, and the teenager's cheeks reddened a bit in guilt as he obeyed him and climbed into the seat, the door slamming once he was in position. Levi walked around the car and climbed in on the drivers side, pulling the door shut and starting the car.

"Levi, I- ".

"What the fuck were you thinking?" Levi interrupted him and started to drive out the gate. "Like seriously Eren, I'm trying to think what the fuck caused you to do something as  _stupid_  as starting a fucking fight?" Levi was  _angry_  and Eren was not used to seeing Levi so pissed. He briefly tried to think of any times his parents had acted like this towards him, but his memory couldn't detect any such circumstance because they never really cared as much as Levi did. He pressed his palm to his chest as he beamed ridiculously over the small fact Levi cared about him.

"He started it".

" _He started it?_  Is that the best excuse you could come up with? Just because he fucking started it doesn't mean you should continue it!" Levi retorted and Eren slumped his shoulders a bit. "Why the fuck were you fighting him in the first place?"

"He... He just kept pushing me".

"Pushing you? So that gives you a reason to fucking punch him?" Levi was swearing a lot more than usual, which he only did when he was very annoyed.

"I know I shouldn't have reacted.... It's just..." Eren hesitated and Levi glanced at him from his seat and waited for him to proceed but grew annoyed when no words followed up.

"It's just what? Don't fucking think you can stop there Eren. You need to tell me what the fuck is going on because right now I am lost, not to mention, fucking livid. I believe I deserve an explanation for having to waste my time because you got into a fucking fight and I have to come and pick your sorry ass up", Levi snapped and Eren looked out his window glumly. 

"He called me a mistake", he grumbled and Levi's lips formed a firm line as he glanced at Eren, not seeming to soften much after those few words so Eren continued reluctantly. "He... He said the reason my parents don't care about me is because I was a mistake", he elaborated and Levi gave out an impatient sigh. Sure, that was a fucking scummy thing to say, he just wished Eren could've been the bigger person and walked away.

"Eren, that's- "

"But that's not what pissed me off", he continued and Levi glanced at him again. "After he said that, he brought you into it", Levi's eyebrows rose a bit at this. "He... Uh... Described you as a pedophile so happily atoning for my parents' mistakes... I couldn't... I didn't like he dirtying your name when he doesn't know a single fucking thing about you and what you've done for me... He just runs his mouth about things that doesn't concern him. He can ridicule my parents all he wants, but I don't want him saying anything bad about you... You've done nothing wrong", he grumbled, an infuriated expression on his face while Levi remained silent. 

Levi personally didn't really care about the opinion of a foul mouthed brat talking shit like that, but the fact that it bothered Eren so much that he resorted to protecting Levi's honour... It was odd, it made his chest tighten a bit. "You don't have to protect me Eren", he responded after a pause of silence, pulling up the complex and switching off the car, leaning back in his seat. 

"I know you think that but I can't help it, I don't want anyone thinking badly of you..."

"Let a teenage cunt think what he wants", Levi scoffed and rolled his eyes. "But... Thank you Eren, it's really... Sweet that you stood up for me, even though you didn't need to", he gave Eren a half smile before his eyes hardened sternly. "That doesn't justify you fighting though", he wagged a finger at Eren who sighed and hung his head a bit.

"Yeah... I'm sorry".

"But really Eren... That's really nice, I'm glad I'm someone you consider so highly. That makes me happy... So unbelievably happy", Levi wasn't one to express his emotions like this. It felt silly and uncomfortable, he didn't like people knowing all that gushy lovey emotions that ran through Levi's blood. It was his soft spot. Eren was his soft spot. "You're a good kid Eren", he reached over and took the teen by the chin, lifting his head so they could one another in the eyes, Levi giving him a rare bright smile that made Eren's heart skip a beat... Everything Levi did made his heart skip a beat... "You mean the world to me Eren. I don't want you fighting and getting yourself hurt okay? Seeing you hurt breaks my heart. Try not to fight okay?" He asked gently and Eren's face reddened as he stared into Levi's eyes, his lips parting a bit as his mind drifted.

He placed his hand over Levi's and leaned closer to him in an effort to give him a kiss, Levi seeming to brace for the action as his lips formed a reluctant line. They always did that when Eren went to kiss him. Eren's lips were an inch away from touching Levi's but he stopped, his warm breath washing over Levi's face which contorted into an expression of confusion.

"Thank you Levi... I promise it won't happen again", Eren withdrew completely and unfastened his seat belt before climbing out the car. Levi sat silently for a moment before he recollected himself and followed Eren out the car.

He didn't kiss him?

Why did that bother him so much?

Why?

_______

 


	13. 17 years old #1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Feelings

Seventeen. The age just before you’re legal to do almost anything in most countries. Levi didn’t know why exactly, but Eren has drifted even further as time went by, he snapped at him more and he was a lot more resilient. It was probably just that period of a person’s life where hormones were through the roof, and Levi remembers how much of a brat he was when he was a teen, but damn… Did Eren make Levi want to beat his face in.

They argued a lot, mostly Eren asking Levi why the fuck he acts like his father and that he doesn’t understand anything Eren is feeling. It was infuriating and now Levi understood why parents were so strict on teens when they reached this age, acting like they knew better. Levi thought he was a good guardian. He never pushed Eren to talk, he would still help Eren when he needed it. Eren was fine in his grades, he was a smart kid, it just seemed to be the fact that he never had patience around Levi.

He seemed to intentionally avoid talking to Levi and when he was asked about it, he would tell Levi it was none of his damn business. The kid was a pain in his ass, but he still wouldn’t trade him for the world.

“Where’re you going?” Eren asked when Levi whisked up his keys and headed to the door, glancing back at Eren with a faint smirk before he faced him.

“I’m going on a date; do I look good?” this fact stunned Eren completely. He couldn’t recall a single time that Levi had gone out with someone, he’s never had a girlfriend in the time Eren’s been around at least. The truth is Eren was the centre of Levi’s life, and now he was at the point where he knew Eren would want to leave as soon as he could to live his own life in his own place, and the thought of being alone… Terrified him. Going out with someone for the first time in years couldn’t hurt right?

“A date? What do you mean you’re going on a date?” Eren walked towards him, his brows knitted together in confusion.

“Does date mean something else to you?” Levi gave him a playful expression but Eren wasn’t seeing any humour in this, in fact, he looked angry.

“Are you doing this piss me off?” Eren growled as he stood in front of Levi and stared down at him with an angered expression, slamming his palm into the door to block Levi from moving away from him. Levi blinked, unable to wipe away the complete bewilderment that was painted in his face. He’s never seen Eren like this.

Well, he’s seen Eren very angry a lot more than he liked, but this was very unusual, and so angry over something so simple? Why the hell was he angry that Levi was going out for once? Why the hell should it matter to him what Levi decided to do with his time?

“What are you talking about?”

Eren’s teeth gritted in frustration before he withdrew completely and walked towards his bedroom. “It doesn’t fucking matter, enjoy your fucking date Levi”.

____

The date just turned out to be a one-night stand. Not that Levi minded, he hasn’t had sex for a couple years honestly with his focus always surrounding Eren. Besides, this date proved to him that dating wasn’t his scene at all. He didn’t see reasons to sugar coat for her, to smile at her, to be all lovey dovey. The entirety of the date consisted of Levi being far too impatient with her, his mind fixated of trying to figure out what the hell was wrong with Eren.

He arrived pretty late that night, entering his home quietly obviously with the assumption that Eren was asleep, but this was proven wrong almost immediately.

“You’re late”, Eren spoke up, leaning on the wall and gazing at Levi like a disappointed parent. Levi blinked at him and gave a harsh glare, clicking his tongue on the top palate of his mouth as he brushed past the teenager and headed for his room.

“What does it matter? It’s not like I’m a kid and have a curfew. Which brings up the case that you are in fact up way past your curfew”, Levi turned to him with a scowl, but he gasped out when Eren grabbed both his wrists and backed him up until he was pressed up into his closed bedroom door. What was happening? He’s never seen Eren act like this before. His eyes burned with a sense of possessiveness and hurt, his grip on Levi’s wrists tightened.

“Eren, what are you doing? Get off of me!” Levi tried to push against Eren’s grip, but the kid didn’t relent, his face leaning closer to Levi’s.

“Levi…” he breathed out deeply and Levi’s eyes widened as he tried desperately to read Eren’s expression, trying to figure out what was going through the kid’s head. He was looking at Levi like he was the most extraordinary thing Eren had ever seen. It was a look that Levi noticed Eren would give him before glaring once he realised he had been caught. He never thought anything of it.

“Eren… What’s going on with you?”

“I’ve never asked you this before Levi but…” Eren trailed off as he stepped closer, placing his thigh between Levi’s legs and brushing his nose against Levi’s teasingly.

“Can I kiss you?” he whispered, and Levi’s eyes widened as he digested Eren’s question. Was this a joke on him or something? He genuinely wasn’t sure, but Eren has never acted like this before and doubted he would even for the sake of a joke. He wasn’t dense, Eren’s request clearly implied something more than just a ‘brisk innocent peck’. Was he seriously asking to kiss Levi?

“Huh?” Was all Levi managed to say but Eren wasn’t willing to wait for more of a response before he firmly pressed his mouth against Levi’s, forcing him to lean his head back against the wall at the sudden pressure. Levi’s eyes broadened as he felt Eren’s mouth move against his, spreading his lips and slipping his tongue inside his mouth.

Levi remained stiff, not responding to Eren’s kiss but not rejecting him either, he was just too dumbfounded to react at all. He never would’ve guessed that Eren would do this, that Eren could possibly want to do this with someone like Levi. Maybe he was just confused… Levi wasn’t his father, he wasn’t even related to Eren so maybe it was to be expected he’d feel... Something for Levi. Perhaps this was his way of figuring himself out, though, Levi didn’t particularly like the idea of just being a guinea pig to Eren’s uncertainty.

Eren suddenly retracted from the kiss, his eyes fluttering open to see how Levi was reacting to his actions. He noticed the gobsmacked expression that covered Levi’s face, his cheeks slightly pink and his lips parted as he gaped up into Eren’s eyes.

It took a second before Eren started to react to his own actions, his eyes widening and his face going pale as he stared down at Levi in horror. What has he done?

“Uh… I…” He stepped away from Levi who didn’t move other than his lips slowly closing and his palms sliding down the wall to rest limply at his sides. “I am… So sorry… I-I shouldn’t have done something so… So stupid!” Eren expressed, backing away and tugging on his hair as regret swallowed him whole. Levi still hasn’t said anything, and his shocked expression fell flat as he stared blankly at Eren.

“I…” Eren stuttered before he looked to the front door. “I should go home”, he said softly and turned to walk away from Levi who watched him, everything suddenly moving in slow motion as he observed Eren walking further and further away from him.

Fourteen years. For fourteen years Eren has been the centre of Levi’s life. It was never planned, it wasn’t meant to turn into a case of Eren practically adapting to Levi to the extent that he had, acting like Levi was his legal guardian now suddenly viewing Levi as a possible lover, or perhaps an experiment that he now regrets performing. Levi never saw Eren as his son despite Eren accusing Levi of feeling that way. Levi saw him as family, as his life, as an irreplaceable person who stood as Levi’s greatest accomplishment. He loved Eren to death and wouldn’t trade him for the world.

However, now he was faced with a situation in which he never considered before. He’s never looked at the kid sexually, never thought of him like that but now he was introduced to that idea. He wasn’t sure how to feel about any of this. Whether he liked the idea or hated it, whether it was right or wrong. This kid… Was selfish.

Eren opened the door to leave but it was immediately shut by Levi who stood beside him now, staring at the door. “L-Levi?” Eren whispered, wondering whether he was angry or not, or rather he expected Levi to be angry and was wondering whether he was going to be hit or kicked out for good. He would have to understand it if Levi did feel that way… No matter how much it would hurt to be resented by the one person you’ve been looking up to for the majority of your life.

“Eren”, Levi said softly and ducked his head. “Was I a bad guardian?”

This question threw Eren off guard for a moment before he immediately responded with, “No! You were better than my parents ever were!”

“Then why do you treat me like this?”

“Levi… I’m sorry about- “

“I’m not talking about that”, Levi looked up at Eren with a frown. “Why do you act like I’m just an object for you to toss around?”

“Levi- “

“Eren, you have said a lot these past few years and I had to deal with it because I loved you and cared for your opinion, but now I think it’s my turn to have a few words, after listening to you scream at me about not minding my business then next moment saying I don’t care about you, then asking whether I’m trying to piss you off, I’ve sat through all of that, now I’m asking you to bite your fucking tongue and listen to what I have to say”, he snapped and stepped away from the door, pointing towards the main room. “Go sit down and we’ll have a nice fucking chat”.

Eren closed his mouth and reluctantly did as Levi said, wrapping his arms around himself anxiously as he went into the next room and took a seat on the couch. Levi didn’t sit down, pacing back and forth in the room which Eren learned meant that he did when he was extremely fucking angry and trying his best not to lose his cool. Eren was not reassured in the slightest.

“You… Are… A selfish brat Eren”, Levi gave him a tight smile as he stopped pacing and crossed his arms over his chest. “Do you really think that after fourteen years, you can just do something like that? After you became my problem because your fucking parents didn’t want to handle you?”

“I’m- “Eren tried to speak.

“Shut the fuck up!” Levi rose his voice, something Eren has only heard him do three or four times in the time they’ve spent together. “Eren I have given up so much for you, I have done the best I can to make you happy, to keep you safe, to keep you healthy and to give you the best life I could. You are the centre of my life Eren! And you think a kiss is going to make me hate you? You try to run away whenever things don’t go your way instead of fessing up to it? Do you take me for a fool?”

“That’s not- “

“Do you want me to tape your mouth shut?” Levi stood right in front of Eren and placed his hand over his mouth to halt him from speaking, his eyes absolutely burning in pure fury. Eren has never seen Levi so angry and a wave of guilt washed over him as his eyes softened, noticing Levi’s stare do the same before he withdrew and took a seat beside Eren, covering his face with his hands.

“I never intended to try and replace your father, or act like you’re my child. I never wanted to pretend to be your parent but all I tried to do what I could to make you happy, and I feel like I’m failing somehow. You never say anything, you never tell me what’s going on and all I can assume is that either I’m doing something wrong or you’re going through some serious hormonal issues”, Eren opened his mouth to speak but immediately shut it.

“I wish you had told me this… Whatever you’re feeling right now… I know it’s probably super awkward and confusing but… I can’t help but feel you’re just fucking with me or you’re just curious and I’m the only one you can test your feelings on”, Eren’s eyes widened a bit and he wrapped his arms around Levi.

“No! That’s not it!”

“Then what else am I supposed to think if you don’t say anything Eren? If you just kiss me out of nowhere then try to scurry off and say you’re fucking going home when you’ve been here for most of your life?”

“Levi, you’ve acted as my parent since I was three, who am I to think you’d regard me as anything else but a son or a child? I thought acting or talking about my feelings would make you hate me. I got scared! If you want me to leave and never see you again, I understand… I shouldn’t have- “

Levi pried Eren’s arms off of him and stood up, trying really hard not to lose his temper and lash out at him, because that would no doubt only make things worse.

“And this is you missing my point”, Levi laughed cynically, placing his hands on his hips and looking around the room to contain his anger from breaking out. “If that were the case, that I was disgusted by what you did, it wouldn’t be easier for me to let you off. I don’t think you understand how much you mean to me”, Levi gave Eren a bewildered expression.

“If you left, it’d tear me apart Eren, especially after what just happened. I would do anything humanly possibly to make things easier for you. I would never hate you for something like this. I’m not your father. I never thought of myself as your father and you should make sure you understand that damn well. I don’t know what you feel for me, whether I’m just your test subject or- “

“I’m not confused”, Eren snapped and stood up, his eyes glaring into Levi’s. “You want the truth Levi? I have loved you, most likely from the second I saw you. Maybe I hadn’t noticed it when I was a little kid, but I have never thought so highly of someone as much I have for you. I have had girlfriends and a boyfriend briefly, but it always ended quickly because I can’t date someone when I’m in love with another person. I admired you when I was younger and slowly it turned into something I can’t contain. I can’t stand that you’re not mine, that I can’t touch you, that I love you so much”, Eren started to cry and Levi blinked away his surprise. It was silly but when Eren said that he’s been in relationships, Levi’s first thought was ‘how did I not know that?’

“The kisses I always gave you”, Eren walked up to Levi and cupped his cheeks, bringing their bodies against one another. “The older I got, the more I wished they could be longer. I stopped doing it when I realised that I couldn’t handle pecks anymore. If I tried to kiss you I’d most likely lose my mind and do more than I should”, Levi’s body tensed as their noses brushed one another. There was a moment of silence as they stood in that position, Levi’s expression unreadable and Eren’s showing something that resembled ‘hope’.

“Levi… I love you… If you don’t feel that way about me, I can understand that, but please don’t make me leave, don’t turn away from me… Don’t hate me… Let me kiss you one more time… Please, then I’ll never bring it up again. It can be just the way things used to be…” Eren was begging Levi, his hands moving down from Levi’s face to grasp his hands that hung at his sides and intertwine their fingers.

Levi had a lot to say about Eren’s words, but he didn’t think speaking was needed right now, immediately leaning up a bit and connecting their lips, slipping his tongue into Eren’s mouth when he gasped softly in surprise. Eren recovered from his shock and quickly leaned down into the kiss, squeezing Levi’s hands softly as he moaned into the kiss.

All those little kisses from times… When he thanked Levi for food.

When he was able to sleep in Levi’s bed after he had a nightmare.

When Levi found Eren when he went missing temporarily.

When Levi patched up his cuts and injuries.

When Levi dropped him off from school.

When Levi would praise him for doing well at school.

When Levi aided him to health.

When Levi protected him.

When Levi comforted him.

When Levi stood up for him when no one else would.

When Levi made him happy.

When Levi made him fall in love.

Eren always loved kissing Levi. It was always his way of thanking Levi, of telling Levi he loved him, of showing his appreciation.

“Levi”, Eren pulled back and moaned against the other males lips. He could feel Levi’s hands squeeze his own slightly; his kisses were hesitant and slow, like he was entering new territory. Eren didn’t blame him, seeing as kissing the kid you’ve raised wasn’t exactly an easy thing to digest. He wondered if Levi was just doing this because Eren said it would only be once more then never again, or if Levi was genuinely considering taking further steps. He prayed and hoped to God it wouldn’t be just this once, that Levi can somehow look past the fact that Eren was like his child and see him as a man that loved him romantically as well as sexually.

“Eren…” Levi muttered softly as he closed his eyes. “Again”, Levi said slowly and Eren smiled as he reconnected their lips once more, just holding it before they slowly moved against one another in synchronization. It felt so overwhelmingly good to Eren and he hoped Levi felt the same way, there was no one else in the world who has made Eren feel this way, and he wanted to be like that for Levi too.

Levi withdrew and pulled his hands away from Eren’s to wrap his arms around the teen’s body, hugging him close. Eren seemed a bit stunned but he quickly reciprocated and enveloped the older man into his embrace and placed his chin on Levi’s head, marvelling at how short he was for a moment. Perhaps it was a little immature to ask this now, but it was nagging Eren in the back of his mind.

“How was your date?”

“Fine”, Levi said simply.

“What did you do?” He squeezed Levi a bit. “Do you plan on seeing her again?”

“It was a one-time thing”, Levi said and Eren stayed silent for a moment before he pulled away from Levi and pushed him back, so he sat on the couch with Eren standing before him.

“Did you fuck her?”

“Eren…”

“You did? Didn’t you?” Eren traced his tongue over his lips. “I can taste chapstick on your lips”, Eren narrowed his eyes a bit and leaned down so he looked directly into Levi’s eyes. They haven’t even confirmed whether or not they were willing to be involved with one another yet, but Eren couldn’t help but feel possessiveness and envy overtake him at the thought of some woman being able to have what he couldn’t.

“Yes, we did, we had sex Eren, it doesn’t matter because I don’t think I’ll be seeing her again”, Levi frowned in discomfort.

Eren sighed and leaned closer to Levi, his lips briefly teasing Levi’s but not kissing him. “I’d hope not… I want… I want to ensure that you won’t be going out with anyone else but me… Fuck me instead, not anyone else”, Eren’s direct words stunned Levi who stood up quickly and moved away to stand behind the couch.

“Okay Eren, ground rules”, Levi said seriously as Eren slowly stood up straight and glared in Levi’s direction. “I am willing to try a relationship with you”, Levi said slowly and Eren’s eyes shot open wide in glee as he registered those words, moving to embrace him but the older male continued to back away. “However”, he continued. “You will have to accept I will be taking this slow, since this is… A lot to digest. I will also not be having sex with you or doing anything other than kissing until you are eighteen”, Levi said seriously, and a rather irritated expression flushed Eren’s features.

“But that’s months away!” Eren complained to which Levi gave him a disapproving look.

“If you say you’ve loved me for as long as you have, then surely you can respect my request in waiting a little longer. Also, I’m fucking sorry, but you should be fucking _grateful_ I’m even doing that much. Do you know that me being in a relationship with you is actually _illegal_?” Levi pointed out sternly and Eren crossed his arms and looked away from Levi with a sour face.

“We don’t have to tell anyone…”

“Eren no, I’m not sleeping with a minor, it goes against my morals. Besides… I want to take this slow”, he looked away briefly as if to think deeply. “I have to get used to the idea of me being with you… Like this. Also I want to make sure you’re sure”, he noticed Eren was about to respond passively to that, so he continued speaking. “I’m not saying I think you’re lying or confused! I just… If you love me enough to be in a relationship that doesn’t involve sex until you’re legally allowed, then I know you’re willing to be with me fully. I want you to be sure this is real emotional love and not sexual attraction. I do not want to be used to satisfy your pleasure. Do you understand me?”

Eren paused a bit before he let out a breath and turned to Levi with a small smile on his face. “I understand… If it means I can be considered someone important to you, then I’m willing to wait a lifetime”.

“Eren you’ve always been important to me”.

“But not like a kid to a father”, Eren moved to stand right before Levi, brushing his hands along Levi’s upper arms gently. “I want to be seen as a lover to you. Someone intimately important to you”, Eren slowly leaned closer, his forehead pressed against Levi’s. “I want to be the person you want at your side”.

Levi didn’t know what to say to that, so he leaned up and kissed the teenager, his arms wrapping themselves over Eren’s neck and drawing him near as their mouths mingled. It was so odd how right it felt… It felt so right Levi had no idea what to do with himself. Those kisses meant the world to him and he was only seeing that now…

“Thank you”, Eren mumbled into the kiss and they parted only slightly, breaths mixing in together as their lips hovered over one another. “Thank you for giving me a chance…”

______________


End file.
